FIGHT'EM 'TILL YOU CAN'T - THRASH
STILL FIGHTS WITH ANTHRAX
.
Thrash
Metal got shocked back to life
in 2010-2011 as the Big Four (Metallica,
Megadeth, Slayer & Anthrax)
stood tall and together in stadiums
worldwide as both innovators and
survivors. The Thrash Metal Rallyalso put rivalries to rest
both between bands and amongst bands
as the world saw Megadeth and
Metallica share the stage for
the first time and also saw
Anthrax bring back original
vocalist Joey Belladonna.
Anthrax has since
released a new album with Joey
on vocals entitled 'Worship
Music' and has also embarked on
a headlining tour with two other
O.G.'s of Thrash Metal. Those
two O.G.'s being Testament
and Death Angel.
Before the tour started, I had a
chance to chat with Joey for
a few, which you can read below. I
also interviewed Mr. Belladonna
in late 2010, when 3
of the Big Four (Megadeth,
Slayer & Anthrax) toured
together. That video interview is at
the bottom of this page as well. So
you got two interviews with Joey
for the price of...FREE!
SplatterTribe Style!!
SplatterTribe TV
on
SplatterTribe.TV
Interview conducted
by Luie
Brangers.
Posted January 15,
2012
SplatterTribe:
The last Big Four
gig took place in
New York, after
having several under
you guys belts now,
how were things
different for that
show?
JOEY BELLADONNA:
Same deal… It was
New York City, that
was the big thing.
New York City’s got
everybody’s friends,
family and
everything. You
know, each (show is
different). You’ve
got a different
venue, a different
backstage, different
distances getting
there (laughs). Just
the dumbest things
are different.
Getting onstage and
playing the show and
the set list and
things are fairly
the same. We’ve
broken that up too
sometimes, though...
But It’s just a
different setting.
SplatterTribe:
When I name the
songs on the new
album, you say
whatever comes to
mind… The first
track is 'Worship
Music', which is an
intro, so we'll
start with Track 2
-'Earth
On Hell'...
JOEY BELLADONNA:
Fast, Heavy...
SplatterTribe:
How were these
songs presented to
you? I mean the rest
of the guys had them
before you rejoined
the band. So how did
you first hear them?
JOEY BELLADONNA:
Just the basic
track…just the
music, you know…
They gave me lyric
sheets and basically
(said) go bang away
at the songs. We
talked about some of
the songs, as far as
melody. We talked
back and forth on
what we needed to do
with some of the
songs. Some of the
songs had the lyric
and the guitar
fumbling around in
the background, just
kind of giving you
the spot where to
start (singing). Frank and
me, on the back of
the bus, we had a
few discussions on
what to do, maybe,
here or there. I
don’t pay too much
attention to any of
it. I don’t want to
have to be really
restrained to an
idea. It just
doesn’t work that
way. You know…(says
really really
slowly),
"I’ve…got…to…sing…it…like…this…because…it…goes…like…that."
I can’t do it. I
can’t play it that
way, you know? We
know where we’re
going. I come in
there... I go out
there... I was
usually conservative
with what I was
doing. I could have
done more. I didn’t
want to get to crazy
and have everybody
goin’, “Whoa,
Whoa, Whoa…Wait a
minute. What’s goin
on?” I was kind
handing in homework,
if you know what I
mean… We wanted to
move on to another
song, you know?
That’s what we were
looking to do was
make sure that we
had the opportunity
to get another song
goin’ each day. I
only had so many
days to finish.
SplatterTribe:
Did you feel time
constrained or does
it just come natural
working with these
guys to be like
that, or is that how
you try to do it, in
general?
JOEY BELLADONNA:
Well, there was some
definitely…A little
bit of…"Oh shit,
I hope I can get it
in because I’ve only
got four days here
and I’ve got to get
back home." I
only had so many
days that I had… me
and the producer. At
any given moment we
could have used a
couple more days,
but we did it. We
did it in the
timeframe.
SplatterTribe:
You were still
playing your cover
band gigs around
this also, right?
JOEY BELLADONNA:
Yeah, that’s
basically what I was
working around. I
was playing my Belladonna
(band) too. I was
playing out a lot. I
was like, “I’ve
got to get back and
play this weekend.
I’ll see you maybe
in a couple of
weeks. Till then get
busy…I’m busy.”
But yeah, I’m still
playing right now. I
play this weekend. I
played last weekend.
The day I got back
from Yankee
Stadium, I
played.
SplatterTribe:
What it like to
go from Yankee
Stadium to a club
the next night?
JOEY BELLADONNA:
Ahh, (laughs) it’s
completely different
man. It’s almost
surreal. It’s
something you’re
like...”naw, you
didn’t”… It’s
like, “Yeah…”,
cause that’s what I
do. I don’t mind it.
I know what the deal
is when I get
there. It’s just as
exiting to me to get
in my car and drive
there and get down
and set my drums up
and have fun. People
go into dance mode
or whatever the Hell
they do, you know.
They just party it
up and I go out and
do songs. It’s just
completely different
(than the stadiums).
SplatterTribe:
In stadiums, they
always say you have
to move big so
people can see you
and in clubs you
don’t have to, does
that come into you
performances at all?
I know you do play
drums though in your
cover band.
JOEY BELLADONNA:
I
don’t really play it
any different. The
only difference is,
I’m not lead
singing. I mean,
with the Anthrax
music, the band, the
songs are all so
different and
everything, but I
don’t actually go
into (any of it)
with a different
mentality. I try not
to (talks very
slowly again),
“da…da…da… It’s a
crappy…club… They
don’t care… No one…
cares…” I
don’t feel that way.
We’re just as
psyched and when I
leave, I want to
know what we did
wrong. Why we didn’t
play that song…or
anything, whatever
it is.
SplatterTribe:
OK, Getting back to
the songs…what about
Track 3- ‘Devil
You Know’?
JOEY BELLADONNA:
'Devil You Know'
has a great
rip-rocking feel.
It’s good. The
vocals were in the
pocket, so I’m happy
with that, because
it was a different
tempo.
SplatterTribe:
Track 4- ‘Fight’em
Till You Can’t’…
JOEY BELLADONNA:
That’s the first
song I sang. That’s
what I know about
that one. It came
together quite good
and I think it set
the tone for the
whole record.
SplatterTribe:
Track 5- ‘I’m
Alive’...
JOEY BELLADONNA:
I’m Alive…It’s
another one of those
different tempo
tunes. It’s got a
great chorus.
SplatterTribe:
Track 6- is an
interlude entitled
'Hymn 1', so
we'll skip it and
move onto Track 7- ‘In The
End’…
JOEY BELLADONNA:
Ronnie Dio.
That’s what I think
of Ronnie Dio
and Dimebag.
That song was one of
the last songs. I
didn’t even hear
that. It came
together so quick.
It felt great. It’s
so pounding and
that’s a cool thing.
SplatterTribe:
It’s been beat over
the head that these
songs were there
before you came back
to the band, but are
any of these songs
newer and are you
guys writing any
newer songs?
JOEY BELLADONNA:
…Some of these songs
are newer, but right
now I think there’s
probably a few left
over. Obviously it’s
still early in the
new album (though).
Personally, once we
get the songs LIVE
under our belts, we
could move into
another phase of
writing again…
SplatterTribe:
Were there several
left over songs?
JOEY BELLADONNA:
Just one that I know
of. I almost had
time to get to that
one though.
SplatterTribe:
Track 8- ‘The
Giant’...
JOEY BELLADONNA: 'Giant'
was one of the one
that at first I
wasn’t sure what I
was gonna do or how
good it was gonna be
for me, because it
was a bit erratic
singing. At first I
thought it was
almost too much for
me to gather in a
song. I did the
chorus. I put that
together and made
that sound really
cool and I
backtracked to the
verses later.
SplatterTribe:
Speaking of
'The Giant',
what songs were the
ones that took you
out of your element
a little more than
the others?
JOEY BELLADONNA:
Like I said 'The
Giant' for sure
but not even really
that largely. It was
just a lot. There
was a lot of good
tunes that had the
right...good
elements to sing
over and that one
was a little extra
busier than the
other ones. I didn’t
want to get to where
I would have a hell
of a time trying to
make it (into)
anything really
cool. Once you get
bogged down with a
lot of lyrics, you
really don’t get a
chance to sing over
it. You’re fighting
to sing with the
lyrics, you know?
SplatterTribe:
Track 9 is another
interlude entitled
'Hymn 2', so
we'll move on to Track
10-
'Judas Priest'...
JOEY BELLADONNA:
'Priest'
was cool just
because the title
'Priest' put me
in a…you know… It
felt good to hit
that song. I liked
the bulk of it. It
was another one of
those that I didn’t
hear at all and it
was one of the last
songs I sang. It
just felt cool to
do. It’s another
long one. There’s
several different
parts to it.
SplatterTribe:
What about Track 11- ‘Crawl’?
JOEY BELLADONNA:
'Crawl',
(one of) the first
songs I sang. It’s a
good tempo. The
whole flow and intro
was kind of neat.
That one worked.
SplatterTribe:
Track 12- ‘The
Constant’...
JOEY BELLADONNA:That
was another one of
those groovy tunes.
It made it nice to
be able to fit in
the pocket and
figure it out. I
felt good about that
one.
SplatterTribe:
Track 13-
‘Revolution
Screams’...
JOEY BELLADONNA:
That one is fast. I
love the power that
comes with the song.
SplatterTribe:
How do you guys pick
which new songs to
play live?
JOEY BELLADONNA:
Well, the band kind
of puts two and two
together and try to
figure what we know
and what we can pull
off…
SplatterTribe:
What about your
Belladonna band,
is all that on hold
now?
JOEY BELLADONNA:
Yeah, I gotta put
all of that to the
side. The cover band
I can do because
I’ve painted a
window where I can
do it. With
Belladonna, you
got to travel a
little bit. It takes
a little time to put
all of that
together. You got to
book it, advertise
it and all that kind
of stuff. So I put
Belladonna on
the side a little
bit.
SplatterTribe:
Anthrax will be
pretty busy for a
while, huh?
JOEY BELLADONNA:
Yeah, I certainly
believe that would
be the case. We
always used to be
busy. There’s so
many places you can
hit. There’s just
such a little amount
of time to get it
all in.
SplatterTribe:
Well, I really like
the new album. I
think it sounds
fresh and still very
classic Anthrax…
JOEY BELLADONNA:
Yeah, like something
you’ve never heard
before right? That’s
the way I feel like
when I’m singing it,
that this (kind of)
stuff just isn’t out
(there) right now.
That’s what we were.
We were different.
That’s what I liked
about it. You’re the
first person to
really not bring up
the other singers
and stuff
(actually), but when
I was there
(originally) we had
our own little stamp
and that’s the cool
thing. You cannot
(just) find that.
You can’t take a guy
and put that
together and hope
for that. You have
to try for that and
see how it falls
into place…
SplatterTribe:
Yeah, I mean, you
kept performing
while you wasn’t
with these guys, so
you kept your chops
up and it just seems
natural that you fit
right back into
place.
JOEY BELLADONNA:
Yeah, I try to keep
busy. I just like to
play. I’d be playing
this afternoon if
they had a gig. I
just wanted to make
some noise. That’s
what we used to do
when we were
younger. Just get
down in the basement
and (come) up with
some tunes and get
the music goin'.
SplatterTribe:
In my experience
with you, you seem
like a pretty easy
going guy. I mean, I
don’t know you well,
but I’m just
curious... Does
anything anger you?
JOEY BELLADONNA:
For me, I’m always
looking for fairness
and people that are
just very open
minded about things
and sincere, you
know? You look for
that kind of thing.
SplatterTribe:
How do you
personally do your
songwriting?
JOEY BELLADONNA:
I
just get on the
drums, get a guitar
goin and rip a bit.
I get the beat, the
basic idea and then
when the riff comes
on, I’m thinking
vocal right away.
How the melody would
fit into the key of
the writing to kind
of make it work. You
know, part by part.
The lyrics don’t
come till later for
me. I’m just kind of
(working) on the
whole thing without
any words or lines
sometimes. Just the
whole idea of the
song is put together
by parts.
SplatterTribe:
So it normally
starts on drums for
you?
JOEY BELLADONNA:
Yeah drums or
humming it. I’m
humming guitar a
lot. Thinking drums.
Thinking the whole
of the song and once
the riff fits into
that whole mode, you
just start laying
bass down and get
the format going.
Then start arranging
it and start singing
over it and
thinking, “that may
be a little too
long…(or
something).” I don’t
do any of that with
Anthrax
though. It’s totally
different, which
some people wouldn’t
be able to do any
of that. If we
did it would be a
favorite way of
doing it. I don’t
really have a
favorite (but). What
we do with
Anthrax seems to
work quite well. I
would like to be
there at times. I’ve
never been there. In
the end on the
album…not the 'In
The End' song,
but in the end, when
we’re finished, I
would like to
actually come up
with some things.
More and more as I
go and it gets used,
the more ideas…and
it works out great…
(laughs) but I don’t
know. You can’t
argue with the fact
that it seems to
work right (as it
is).
SplatterTribe:
The album does sound
classic and fresh
and awesome with you
back on vocals...
JOEY BELLADONNA:
I
think you’ve got a
mixture of a lot of
things in there. I
think it sounds a
little more later
than newer. I mean,
There’s some old
stuff in there. They
have friends with
styles that they’ve
d abbled into and I
think some of that’s
coming in there
also. But I think in
time everybody moves
on to different
ideas and
inspiration.
SplatterTribe:
Are there any of the
old songs that you
would like to play
live?
JOEY BELLADONNA:
Yeah, sure, there’s
songs. There’s a lot
of songs people want
to hear. There’s
people talking about
‘Lone Justice’.
I don’t know, people
yell out (all kinds
of songs). I don’t
know in particular
what songs (we can
play). We just have
to see. Everything
LIVE doesn’t always
work. That’s the
same with the new
stuff. Until we try
it, we might love
the songs but LIVE
it’s a lot harder.
Some songs don’t
have the crowd
participation that
you’re looking for
like
Anti-Social
or Indians (do). You just
got to get used to
playing them
(though) and once
you play them a
little bit you just
get into the song
and not worry about
if it is a crowd
oriented song. ‘In My World’
isn’t a crowd
oriented song, but
it worked, you know?
It doesn’t have to
be wild and crazy
and everyone singing
along. I don’t sing
a long to a lot of
stuff I like but it
doesn’t mean I don’t
like it.
SplatterTribe: Any
closing comments and
I'll let you on your
way...
JOEY BELLADONNA:
I
hope to see some new
friends out there
and get ready for
some good ole
AN...THRAX!!!
BONUS Interview!!
Video Interview
w/Joey originally
Posted 10-15-10
